By Fiona Walker
IF you haven’t heard of Maggie’s, count yourself lucky. If you have heard of Maggie’s, the chances are that you, or someone you care about, has been treated for a life-threatening cancer.
So what is Maggie’s? A refuge? A sanctuary? A respite? A breathing space? An oasis of calm in a time of turmoil? Yes, yes, yes, yes and yes; Maggie’s is all of these, and so much more.
Two years ago, the husband of my very close friend was in a bad way. After months of debilitating symptoms, he had finally been diagnosed with a rare blood cancer and flown from Guernsey to Southampton General, where his condition deteriorated rapidly. As he veered in and out of consciousness, hallucinating and struggling against his treatment, Ali and her children spent long and anxious hours at the hospital, either sitting at his bedside or waiting in public seating areas, cafés or the canteen.
By chance, shortly before they left Guernsey, Ali had picked up a leaflet about Maggie’s.
In 1988, Maggie Keswick Jencks was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 47. Five years later, on a visit to a hospital in Edinburgh, she was told that her cancer had returned. She and her husband were left alone in a windowless corridor to digest this information and after her experience, she vowed to set up a new type of support for cancer patients; she believed that with the right help and support, people could change the way they live with cancer. That vision became a reality in 1996 when the first Maggie’s opened in Edinburgh. Sadly, she didn’t live to see her dream fulfilled, as Maggie died shortly before the opening of the first centre bearing her name.
At the hospital in Southampton, a nurse on the oncology ward directed my friend to a simple, Scandi design, one-storey building, standing in its own landscaped corner of the car park. When she ventured inside, Ali was warmly welcomed by staff members who offered her a cup of tea and explained the philosophy of Maggie’s: to support anyone with any type or stage of cancer, their families and their friends, for as long as required and in any way possible. Suddenly she was with people who understood exactly what she was going through.
Many of the staff have previously been medical professionals in the sphere of cancer. They listened to her story and were able to explain, in simple, understandable terms, the medical jargon and incomprehensible procedures that were being applied to Mike. Their approach was calming and reassuring and gave her the help and encouragement she needed, on both a practical and emotional level.
On a trip to visit Mike, I arranged to meet Ali at Maggie’s. When I arrived, expecting to find her in one of the tastefully furnished relaxation areas – remember how hygge design, ‘encompassing a feeling of quiet comfort’, was all the rage a year or two back? Well, Maggie’s has it down to a T – there was no sign of her. One of the team approached and said that my friend had already arrived but looked so exhausted that they had sent her to rest in one of their private areas and now she was fast asleep. They cared deeply about her wellbeing.
Over the course of the next few months, Maggie’s became the retreat that Ali needed from the noise, activity and impersonal atmosphere of the hospital. As Mike’s condition improved, he was occasionally able to escape, between treatments, from the antiseptic confines of the ward and relax in the calm surroundings of this nearby refuge.
But like Maggie’s story, Mike’s too has a sad ending. After a roller coaster 11 months of treatment, during which he both responded well to medication and then deteriorated again, his blood count improved and then declined, his strength waned but his spirit and determination remained as strong as ever, no more medical options were available. Mike returned to Guernsey where he gently passed away last September, held in the arms of his beloved Ali.
My brave friend has since joined Guernsey Friends of Maggie’s and helped to raise funds and awareness for this amazing charity, which gave her family so much support during their darkest hours. Their son raised over £6,000 by completing a marathon in memory of his dad.
Maggie’s now has centres running in conjunction with hospitals up and down the country and will offer support to any and all Channel Islanders having cancer treatment in Southampton.
If you were ever minded to support a truly good charity that understands the needs of its beneficiaries, Maggie’s is worthy of consideration.
